Automatic loom for the manufacture of knot stitch carpets



June 29, 1937. J. MONIER AUTOMATIC LOOM FOR THE MANUFACTURE OF KNOTSTITCH CARPETS June 29, 1937. T J. MONIER 2,085,507

AUTOMATIC LOOM FOR THE MANUFACTURE OF KNO T STITCH GARPETS Filed'Jan.30, 1954 15 Sheets-$heet 2 June 29, 1937. J. MONIER 2,085,507

I AUTOM ATIC LOOM FOR THE MANUFACTURE OF KNOT STITCH CARPETS Filed Jan.50,1934 l5 Sheets-Sheet 5 m m m n m m June 29,1937. J. MONIER 2,085,507

AUTOMATIC LOOM FOR THE MANUFACTURE OF KNOT STITCH CARE ETS Filed Jan.50, 1934 15 Sheets-Sheet 4 June 29, 1937. v J M R 2,085,507

AUTOMATIC LOOM FOR THE MANUFACTURE 01f KNOT STITCH CARPETS Filed Jan.30, 1934 13 Sheets-Sheet 5 June 29, 1937. r MONlER 2,085,507

AUTOMATIC 'LOOM FOR THE MANUFACTURE OF KNO T STITCH CARPETS Filed Jan.30, 1934 15 Sheets-Sheet 6 Jime 29, 1937.

J. MONIER AUTOMATIC LOOM FOR THE MANUFACTURE OF KNOT STITCH CARPETSFiled Jan. 30, 1934 is Sheets-Sheet 7 ill kef VQN To R June 29, 1937. J.MQNIER 7 2,085,507

AUTOMATIC LOOM FOR THE MANUFACTURE OF, KNOT STITCH; CARPETS Filed Jan.30, 1934 15 Sheets-Sheet 8 J. MONIER June '29, 1937,

AUTOMATIC LOOM FOR THE MANUFACTURE OF KNOT STITCH CARPETS I Filed Jan.30, 1954 .13 Sheets-Sheet 9 U' OWan/m 15 Sheets-Shet l0 J. MONIER June29, 1937;

AUTQMATIC LOOM FOR THE MANUFACTURE KNOT STITCH CARPE'IS Filed Jan. 50,1934 M a m N n M Z. fi {Ll m l -u n 0/ 1| 4 W n. v V m U.

J. MONIER June 29, 1937.

AUTOMATIC LOOM FOR THE MANUFACTURE OF KNOT STITCH CARPETS Filed Jan. 50,1954 15 Sheets-Sheet 11 IIUUUHU J. MONIER 2,085,507

AUTOMATIC LOOM FOR THE MANUFACTURE OF KNOT STITCH CARPETS June 29, 1937.

Filed Jan. 50, 1934 15 Sheets-Sheer. 12

J. MONIER June 29, 1937.

AUTOMATIC LOOM FOR THE MANUFACTURE OF KNOT STITCH CARPETS Filed Jar 50,1934 13 Sheets-Sheet l3 e- To)? WMMKM 55 tion of the needle changingdevice.

Eatenteoi June 29, 1937 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE AUTOMATIC LOOM FOREHE MANUFAC- TURE OF KNOT STITCH CARPETS Application January 30, 1934,Serial No. 709,041 In France February 16, 1933 14 Claims.

The present invention relates to the manufacture of knot stitch carpetsby means of looms of the type disclosed in U. S. Patent No. 1,690,802dated November 6, 1928, modified to include the device for transformingPersian into Smyrna stitches in accordance with the disclosure in PatentNo. 1,803,222 dated April 28, 1931.

The object of the present invention is to render the operation of theloom entirely automatic for rendering the manufacture of carpets moreeconomical by the continuous operation of the loom at a higher speedthan heretofore possible. In the accompanying drawings wherein anapproved embodiment of the invention is illusl 5 trated Figs. 1 and 1ataken together present a side elevation of the loom.

Figs. 2 and 2m taken together present a longitudinal sectional Viewthrough the loom. 20 Fig. 3 is a detail horizontal sectional view takenapproximately in the plane of the line 33 of Fig. 1.

Fig. 4. is a detail side elevation of the right hand needle carriageremoved.

Fig. 5 is a fragmentary front elevation of the carriage showing theneedle locking bar in operative position.

Fig. 6 is a view similar to Fig. 5 showing the locking bar ininoperative position.

Fig. '7 is a fragmentary detail view of the vertically movable battenand the supporting and operating means therefor.

Figs. 8 and 9 are detail views showing the different positions of theguide for the batten.

Fig. 10 is a horizontal sectional view on the line I8|ll of Fig. '7.

Figs. 11 to 13 are diagrammatic views showing the selection of the warpthreads.

Fig. 14 is a detail vertical section through the 40 loom showing thebatten, shuttle race forming device and the weft thread extendingdevice.

, Fig. 15 is a view similar to Fig. 14 showing certain of the parts in adifferent position.

Fig. 16 is a diagrammatic view showing the operation of the weftextending fingers.

Fig. 17 is a diagrammatic top plan view of the operating means for theweft extending fingers. Fig. 18 is a detail sectional view of thecarriage 5O drive mechanism.

Fig. 19 is a detail side elevation of the racks receiving the boxescontaining the used and unused needles and the mechanism associatedtherewith.

Fig. 20 is a fragmentary front view of a per- Fig. 21 is a sideelevation of the arrangement shown in Fig. 20.

Fig. 22 is a view similar to Fig. 21 showing the parts in the positionthey assume at the moment a box containing a fresh supply of needles ispicked up by the needle changing device. 1

Figs. 23 and 24 are horizontal sectional detail and front views,respectively, of the device for releasing the boxes containing the usedneedles from the needle changing device.

Fig. 25 is a fragmentary perspective view of one of the needle boxes.

Fig. 26 is a perspective detail of the needle box shown in section.

Fig. 27 is a partial sectional view of the clamping and cutting tableshowing one of the grooves for receiving a hook.

Fig. 28 is a detail view of the cutting and clamping table, showing thepile thread after passageof the needle over the table.

Fig. 29 is a similar detail view showing the end of the pile threadbetween the hooks and cutting clamping member.

Fig. 30 is a partial front elevation of the cutting and clamping table.

Fig. 31 is a View similar to Fig. 28 showing a different position of theparts, the table resting on the last row of stitches knotted around thewarp threads.

Fig. 32 is a. partial elevation of a modified form of cutting device. 1

Fig. 33 is an end view of the modified cutting device showing part ofthe operating means therefor.

Fig. 34 is a view similar to Fig. 32 showing the means for actuating thecutting blades.

Fig. 35 is a view similar to Fig. 33 showing another part of theoperating means for the cutting device. 1

Figs. 36 and 37 are views similar to Fig. 34 showing two other positionsof the cutting blades.

Fig. 38 is a view similar to Fig. 22 on an enlarged scale and showingthe device for positioning the pile thread needles.

Figs. 39 and 40 are front and top plan views, respectively, of Fig. 38.

7 Referring to the drawings in detail the loom consists of a suitableframe structure in which a sheetof warp threads a unwinds from a warpbeam a passing over a thread tensioning device a3. During the winding ofthe pile threads around the warp threads, the said pile threads are heldby the gripping of the warp threads between them. A suitable shedforming device such as indicated at 8 and a shuttle picking moin detailsince they are well known in the art of looms to which this inventionrelates.

The mechanism for effecting the automatic operation of the loom includesthree shafts I, 2,

a V and 3 which appear in Fig. 1 and are shown in top to the loom frame.

plan view in Fig. 3. .These three shafts operate various mechanisms ofthe loom in timed relation as will hereinafter appear.

As shown in Fig. 3, each shaft I, 2, and. 3 carries a worm wheel bengaging a worm I) mounted upon a shaft b carrying at one end a. Blissclutch b which is driven by a power transmitting belt or the like. Atthe other end each shaft b carries a cam 12 on which engages a pushpiece b provided with a pawl b in constant engagement with a ratchetwheel I: mounted upon a common shaft b Three double toothed wheels bprovided with the same number of teeth as the ratchet wheels b aremounted upon the shaft b -and each wheel b carries a pattern chain b thelinks of which are provided with projections'b. A pivoted lever b isengageable at one end with the projections of each chain b and isconnected at its opposite end by a linkage b with the actuating dog b ofthe related clutch b The batten 0 Figs. 2, 7, and 14, is of the typedisclosed in prior U. S. Patents Nos. 1,690,802

and 1,864,106 dated November 6, 1928 and June 21, 1932, respectively,that is to say, the batten is combined with a warp selecting deviceincluding a selectingcomb 0*. The batten is supported by two links 0operated by levers c pivotally mounted at c on the loom frame andconnected by rods 0 with levers c pivoted at c and provided withrollersc engaged and operated by cams keyed on the shaft I. Other rods 0are provided with heads c slidable on the rod 0 which latter areprovided with lugs C constituting a stop for limiting the upwardmovement of the rods 0 The rods c are connected with levers e pivoted at0 having terminal rollers e engaging cams keyed onthe shaft 2.

As shown in Fig. 10 each end of the batten c is T-shaped and confinedfor vertical sliding movement in a'guide 0 These guides, Figs. 7 to 9,are provided at their upper ends with grooved rollers e mounted uponpins 0 fixed The guides e together with the batten c are swung about thepins 0 perpendicularly to the plane of the sheet of warp threads bylinks 0 Fig. 1, leversc fixed to a shaft c and actuated by an arm 0connected by a rod c with a lever e pivoted at 0 the lever beingprovided with a roller 0 engaging an operating cam on the shaft 2.

One of the guides e Figs. 7 and 10, is provided at its lower end with'aslot c receiving a push member 0 the slot 0 being elongated to permitswinging movement of the guides about the pins 0 The push member 0 isprovided with flanges engaging the guide member at one end and at itsopposite end is provided with rollers c'e between which is arranged acam c mounted upon a shaft 0 An arm' 0 carried by the shaft 0 isconnected by a rod 0 Fig. 1, with a lever e pivoted at 0 and providedwith a roller 0 engaginga cam on the shaft 2 of the loom. V j

The device for the periodic formation of a shuttle race for the passageof the. shuttle through the shed is shown in Fig. 2 and more in detailin Figs. 14 through 17. The device in- 'tion system are employed but arenot described cludes angle members d carried by arms d secured to shaftsd on each side of the sheet of warp threads. Two identical gear wheels(1 are secured to the shafts d and being in permanent mesh with eachother, effect rotation of said shafts in opposite directions. One of theshafts d is provided with an operating arm d connected by a rod 11 witha lever 01 which latter is pivoted at d and provided at its opposite endwith a roller 01 engaging a cam on the shaft I.

The angle members d carry relatively short fingers al which, when thearms d are moved together, support the shuttle. As shown in Fig. 14, thefingers (1 are spaced apart when in raceforming position and relativelylong fingers cl are also mounted on one of the angle members and areprovided with recesses (1 Fig. 15, disposed in the axis of the shed andin which the weft is laid by the shuttle. Oscillatory Maltese crosses Zare mounted on a shaft (1 supported in the arms (1 of the other anglemember, the Maltese cross carrying two additional fingers d which areadapted to rock about the shaft (1 between the two positions shown inFigs. 14 and 15. A disk d carrying a pin d" cooperates with each Maltesecross, Fig. 17..

A second set of disks similar to but differently keyed is arranged bythe side of the first set and all the disks are mounted on a shaft (1which is mounted to slide in a direction parallel to the mediate shaftcl which latter is driven by a chain (Z fitted over a pinion (1 Thechain (1 is connected at one end with a spring (1 attached to the loomframe and is connected at its opposite end to a lever 11 pivoted at dand engaging at d with a cam on the shaft I.

The axial movement of the shaft 11 is effected by a lever r1 having aslot therein receiving theshaft (Z to accommodate the swinging movementof the latter about the axis d of the arm d The lever (Z is confinedbetween two flanges ti on said shaft and is secured by a pin (1 to abell crank lever 11 receiving its movement from the rod (1 and a camkeyed on the shaft I.

The batten c is moved to raised position by the i above mentioned leversc and operated by the shafts I and 2, respectively, but said batten isheld in raised position and released to freely fall to beating positionby a pair of toggle links e and e Fig. 2. The adjacent ends of thetoggle links are pivotally connected together and the opposite end ofone link is pivotally mounted to the loom frame while the opposite endof the other link is slotted and receives a pin e fixed to the lever 0As the lever 0 turns in a clockwise direction, Fig. 2, to raise thebatten, the pin 6 is displaced and the toggle links e and e actuated bythe spring e move into alinement with each other and into engagementwith a pin e of a pivoted bell crank lever e The bell crank lever e isconnected by a rod e with a lever e pivoted at e and having its oppositeend engaged in a cam groove-in the shaft I.

The operation of the lever e by the cam groove of the shaft I is sotimed with relation to the operation .of the levers c and 0 that thebell crank lever e is actuated subsequent to the passage of theprominentIpoints of the cams operating said levers c and .01 Thus thepin e engages and breaks the joint of the toggle links e and e and thebatten c is permitted to freely fall by its own weight, the pin 6coacting with the toggle lever e to move the latter to the positionshown in Fig. 2.

Two carriages f carrying the needle receiving boxes 4 are mounted forsliding movement in guides f fixed to the frame of the loom, thecarriages being operated by two pairs of chains interconnected with eachother in accordance with the arrangement disclosed in my above notedPatent 1,690,802. The guides f are shown in Fig. 2 and the operatingchains I for the carriages are shown in Fig. 1.

Each carriage is provided with means for looking the needles in positiontherein as shown in detail in Figs. 4 to 6. The locking means consistsof a locking bar f supported for movement longitudinally of the carriageby means of links I pivoted at f". The locking bar is movable in theguides f and a stop i is provided thereon for limiting its movement. Oneend of each looking bar is provided with a finger f In its lockingposition, the bar I engages with its stop i against the guide f as shownin Figs. 4 and 5. In this position the bar is elevated by the links i soas to engage the needles l2 to lock the latter in position.

Angular needle guiding and positioning members g having invertedV-shaped grooves in the lower edge thereof are supported by arms a whichare slidable in guides 9 provided in each carriage, the arms 9 andpositioning members g being normally urged inwardly towards the sheet ofwarp threads by springs g Pawls g are pivoted at g on the carriage andare adapted to enter in notches 9 formed in the supporting arms When thepositioning member 9 is pushed back.

The pawls g are all connected by a cable 9 which is attached, on the onehand, to the finger f of the locking member 7 and on the other hand to areturn spring attached to the carriage. The inward movement of thesupporting arms 9 under the influence of the springs g is limited bystops g engageable with the guides g Cams g provided on the top of thecarriage coact with the positioning member 9 to lift the latter when itis moved rearwardly against the tension of the springs g so as not toimpede the entry of the needles into the carriage.

When one carriage f meets the other carriage during their approachtoward the sheet of weft threads (1 the points of the needles I2 enterthe slots of the box 4 of the opposite carriage. The two carriagescontinue to advance towards one another,- one of the carriages pushingthe member 9 against the tension of the springs g On return, thesupporting arm g presents its notch g to the pawl g which engagestherein. The locking bar f descends and the needles are free to beWithdrawn from the carriage. The opposite carriage having received theends of the needles, its locking bar f slides along the carriage i thecable 9 being attached to said bar as shownin Fig. 5.

The means for imparting reciprocating movement to the carriage is shownat the right side of Fig. 1 and illustrated in detail in Fig. 18. Thismeans consists of a worm h rotatable in bearings it supported on theloom frame and adapted to move longitudinally in said bearings. A nut kis fitted on the thread of the worm 77. and the latter is provided withtwo plates h? which engage rollers 71 of two forks h pivoted at h andhaving the free ends thereof crossed and connected by a spring h whichnormally tends to separate said forks. A countershaft 71. mounted inbearings 71 supports two cone clutches of which the outer clutch membersh are loosely mounted on the shaft h and are driven by means of beltsapplied to the exterior of the clutch members, the latter being drivenin opposite directions. The inner clutch members it are slidably keyedon the shaft h and are coupled with the forks h by rollers h. A largegear wheel h is rigidly keyed on the shaft k between the forks h and isin constant mesh with a smaller gear wheel 71. keyed to the worm 71.between the plates b Two dogs 71 hold the forks close together and inturn are controlled by links h, Fig. 1, bell cranks i1 rods 71. andlevers h pivoted at 72 and provided with rollers h which engage cams onthe shaft 3. A bell crank lever h is pivoted at h one end of which isadapted to push a finger i1 fixed on one of the rods 71 the opposite endof the lever it having a roller h engaging a cam on the shaft I.

By the operation of the above mentioned cams on the shafts l and 3, theloose clutch members it are alternately engaged with the inner clutchmembers, depending on the operation of the dogs h which are displacedtowards the right or the left by the links h". The displacement of theforks h to engage either clutch is effected by the spring M. In thismanner, the worm h is rotated in one direction or the other, andreciprocating movement is imparted to the carriages.

The return of the carriages f is regulated according to the length ofthe pile thread contained in the needles 12 by an adjustable stop deviceacting upon the nut h and adapted to limitthe return of the carriagesupon the first'passage of the needles. This stop device comprises a rodi Fig. 1, adjustable in a member 2' and held in adjusted position by anut i The member i is pivoted on the loom frame and is operated by alever i a rod 2' and bell crank i a rod i and a lever i pivoted at i andprovided with a roller engaging an operating cam on the shaft 3.

As shown in Fig. 2 a cutting table 5, a back comb 6 and a system ofhooks 'l are provided to transform the wound stitch into a Smyrna knotin accordance with the disclosure in the above mentioned earlier PatentNo. 1,803,222. According to the present invention the previous device issomewhat modified for the purpose of gripping the pile threads above thehooks in the table and not between the last row of stitches and aclamping table above the hooks.

The improvements are shown in detail in Figs. 27 to 31 in which theinclined table is arranged over the entire width of the loom in front ofthe vertical sheet of warp threads a and is capable of being given ato-and-fro longitudinal movement from and towards the warp threads. Thetable is provided with grooves IS in which are located the hooks I. Thehooks are reciprocated by the cross member I6 engaging the angular endsof the hooks in accordance with the arrangement in the above notedPatent No. 1,803,222.

In order to prevent the hooks from coming out of the grooves and rockingtherein, the upper part of the table is provided at its center with adove-tail projection I! over which is engaged a member composed of twoparts It and I8 extending over the entire length of the table. The sideof the table 5 presented to the warp threads is provided between thegrooves IS with beaks I9, Fig. 30, which penetrate the warp threads ac-Fig. 2, is arranged so as to serve also as a clamping or grippingmember.

For this purpose it is pivoted at 2la and is opened and closed by alever 22 and operating rod 23.

During the first selection, the table rises, engages its beaks 19between the selected warp threads 41 and then descends. The pile threadneedles l2 draw the pile thread through the warp threads a as far as thestop. The cutting mem-' ber opens, then closes, moves away from andtoward the hooks and in closing, grips the free ends of the pile threadagainst the hooks 1.

The succeeding operations of the device for forming the Smyrna knottakes place in accordance with the disclosure in the above noted PatentNo. 1,803,222 with the only difference that the pile threads are placedabove the hooks 1 instead of being placed below them and that the table5 is provided with beaks l9 at the end of each groove. The knife 9 isadapted to cut the threads for knotting in accordance with thearrangement disclosed in Patent 1,690,802.

A knife such as designated at 9 in Fig. 2 and cooperating with thegroove 2| shown in Figs.

30 and 31 presents certain disadvantages and in particular isobjectionable owing to the necessity of momentarily stopping theoperation of the loom during the cutting operation thereby slowing upthe production.

This is obviated by the modification of the cutting mechanism asillustrated in Figs. 32 to 37. According to this arrangement a guide 24having agroove therein is supported by an angular member 26 slidablevertically upon screws 28 engaging in slots 26' provided inthe member26. The screws 28 are fitted in the supporting member 21 suitablymounted in the loom and carrying astub shaft 3| provided with arms 29and 32, the last mentioned arm being connected by the link with a lever34 engaging at 35 with an actuating cam 36 (Fig. 33). The other arm 29engages abutment on the angular member 26 whereby movement of the lever34 is imparted to the angular member 26 and produces an upward movementof the latter.

.A rod31 is slidable longitudinally in the groove 25 and is providedwith cutting blades 38 projecting above the guide 24. The knife bladesupporting rod 31 is actuated by a link 39 connected with an arm 40 of atwo-armed lever which is pivoted at 4| and the other arm 42 of which isconnected by a link 43 with a lever 44 engaged at 4.5 with an operatingcam 46.

In operation, the pile thread needles l2 being in a position shown inFigs. 33 and and the hooks I having in each engaged a pile thread of aneedle, as shown in said figures, the cam 36 acting through the lever34, link 33, arms 32 and 29 on the abutment 30, raises the angularmember .26 together with the rod 31 and the cutting blades-securedthereto.

In this 'manner, the angular member 26 is raised to the position shownin Fig. 36 wherein it lies immediately below the sheet formed by thepile threads, the points of the blades 38 sliding between the pilethreads.

In this position, the movement of the angle member 26 is momentarilyarrested and the cam 46 initiates movement of the lever 44 and thismotion is transmitted through the link 43 and arms 42 and to the rod 31and the blades 38 carried thereby. The longitudinal movement of theblades 38 in the groove 25 produces a shearing cutting of the pilethreads as they are successively engaged and in this manner the entiresheet of pile threads is cut.

Following the cutting operation, the cam 46 restores the bladesupporting rod 31 to initial position and the cam 36 permits the angularmember 26 and the blade rod supported therein to descend to normalposition. From the foregoing it is evident that the extent ofdisplacement of the cutting blades 38 for severing all of the pilethreads is a function of the number of blades employed and thus it ispossible, by increasing the number of blades to reduce the displacementnecessary for cutting all of the pile threads.

At one end of the loom a rack k is arranged and along which boxescontaining unused needles containing a fresh supply of pile thread areadvanced to the needle changing device to be hereinafter more fullydescribed. A second rack k is arranged below the first mentioned rackand is adapted to receive the boxes containing the used needlesdeposited thereon by said needle changing device. The generalarrangement of these racks is shown in Figs. 1 and 2 and the mechanismassociated therewith is illustrated in detail in Fig. 19.

Guides k are slidably mounted in tracks k and carry at their lower end aclaw member R the movement of the guides k being controlled by springs kand cables k extending over pulleys k which latter are connected with alever k pivotally mounted at It the lever carrying a roller 70 engaginga cam on a shaft 3" connected by suitable gearing and an intermediateshaft 3 to the loom shaft 3. During the operation of the guides 10 aneedle box 4 moving along the lower rack k is positioned in a clawmember k and raised to the level of the upper racks k Reciprocating barsk are slidably mounted in guides 10 and the rear end of each bar isprovided with a push finger I0 adapted to engage and push the end piecesl3 (Fig. 25) of the needle box which has been raised by the claw memberk and move said needle box onto the upper racks k The end pieces l3 areformed with grooves l4 receiving the edges of the racks k and k therebyguiding the movement of the needle boxes along said racks.

The bars k are connected by links 70 with a crank lever 10 pivoted at k"and carrying a roller 7c engaging a cam keyed on the shaft 3". Themotion of the lever k is thus transmitted to the bars 10 and the latterare reciprocated in the guides It. At the opposite ends of the bars Icpawls k are pivotally mounted and are engageable in grooves 70 (Fig. 25)of the end pieces l3 of the needle boxes.

The stroke. of the bars k is so regulated that during their movementtoward the loom the pawls k engage in a groove 10 of one of the needleboxes and move the latter into position to be engaged by the needlechanging device. The position to which the needle box is advanced byactuation of the pawls I0 is shown in Fig. 2. During the stroke of thebars is toward the loom the fingers 70 thereof engage a needle box whichhas been raised by the claw member k and advances said-needle boxtogether with those in the row ahead of it along the upper racks k Inthis manner the needle boxes on the upper rack are advanced one stepalong the rack k so that the one nearest adjacent the loom is inposition to be engaged and actuated by the pawls 70 on the succeedingstroke of the bars k An arrangement is also provided for moving theneedle boxes rearwardly along the lower rack 70 which consists of a bellcrank lever k; pivoted at R and provided at one end with a roller isengaging a cam keyed on the shaft 3". The opposite depending arm of thelever 10 engages the end pieces l3 of the needle boxes last deposited onthe lower racks k by the needle changing device and thus periodicallymoves the several needle boxes rearwardly along said lower racks wherebythey are caused to successively enter the claw member 70 The position ofthe needle changing device is shown in relation to the other parts ofthe loom at the upper left part of Figs. 1 and 2 and is illustrated indetail in Figs. 20 to 24 and 38 to 40. The device consists of avertically movable member m slidable in guides m and receiving itsmovement from rods m connected with arms m pivotally mounted at m Thearms m are connected with arms m which latter are connected by rods mwith a lever m the roller m of which engages a cam keyed on the shaft lwhich is connected by a train of gears to the shaft I of the loom (Fig.2).

A jaw m 'is pivoted to the lower part of the member m and is providedwith an arm 112 connected by a link m with a lever m (Fig. 2) pivotallymounted at 111 and provided with rollers m engaging cams m keyed on ashaft m Movement is imparted to the shaft m by arms m connected with theslotted ends of rods m the rods being connected with arms m on a shaft.mactuated by an arm m, a rod m and a lever m provided with a roller mengaging a cam on the shaft I of the loom.

Two vertically slidable members 12 are mounted in guides 71 and-areprovided with rack teeth 11 engaging toothed sectors 11 carried by ashaft 11 which also carries an arm n connected by a link n" with a lever11* provided with a roller n engaging a cam on the shaft I of the loom.Inwardly facing U-shaped members n (Figs. 20, 23, and 24) are secured tothe lower ends of the members n The U- shaped members 12 providevertically disposed channels the lower ends: of which are adapted toclose by angular arms n pivotally mounted at n and provided with anactuating finger n In the position shown in Fig. 20 the angular members11 are so positioned as to close the lower ends of the channelspresented by the U- shaped members n whereas in Fig. 24 the angularmembers 11 are tilted outwardly to open said channels. When the angularmembers are in the closed position shown in Fig. 20, they engage andhold the needle boxes 4 but when moved to the position shown in Fig. 24,such angular members are so displaced as to permit the needle box tofall through the U- shaped members n As shown in Figs. 23 and 24, theangular members n are swung outwardly to inoperative position by cams. nwhich are fixed to the frame of the loom and. engage the pins n as thevertically movable membersn reach the limit of their descendingmovement. An angle lever n is pivotally mounted at n adjacent each cam12 and one arm thereof is normally held in engagement with said cam bythe tension of a spring 11,". During the downward movement of the pin 11the latter displaces the lever 12 and, in its upward movement, the pin12 rides along the edge adjacent the arm of the lever n and returns bygravity to operative position.

Two arms (Figs. 1 and 2) are pivotally mounted at o and are adapted,during their swinging movement, to pick up the needle box which has beenadvanced by the pawl R the ends of the arms 0 being claw shaped andarranged to partially embrace the end pieces l3 of the needle boxes.Movement is imparted to the arms 0 through an arm 0 and rod 0 connectedtherewith and with a lever 0 the roller 0 of which engages a cam on theshaft I of the loom. Two lower arms 0'' somewhat longer than the arms 0are pivotally mounted at o and adapted to receive the box containing therow of used needles and todeposit it on the lower racks 70 The arms oare connected with arms 0 and links. 0 connected with a lever 0 providedwith a. roller 0 engaging a cam on the shaft 3".

A needle locking bar 10 (Figs. 20 and 22) similar in construction. andoperation to the needle locking bar I described above in connection.with thecarriages is mounted on the vertically movable member m and isprovided with a pin p adapted when the jaw m closes, to enter a fork pmounted on a shaft 11 supported in the member m The shaft p is actuatedby a lever 12 (Fig. 2) a rod 12 a crank p a rod p and a. lever pprovided with a roller p engaging a cam on the shaft I.

In order to accurately position the needle boxes in position between themember m and the jaw 112. a comb-like member m is secured to the memberm and is formed with slots m having V-shaped edges as shown in Figs. 39and 40 for properly guiding the needles in the recesses of the box.

In the foregoing the construction of the various mechanisms constitutingthe loom have been described as well as the operation of each individualmechanism and the following is a general description of the completeoperation of the loom.

One of the projections b on the chain 12 lifts one of the levers 12thereby actuating the dog 12 of the related Bliss clutch. The clutchthen drives the shaft b through one revolution, the cam 12 causing thepush piece b to rise so that the latter advances the ratchet wheel b tothe extent of one tooth and consequently the three chains Z2 are moved adistance of one link. Another projection of the same chain comes intooperation and the same shaft continues its rotation in the same manneruntil no further projections on the chains are encountered. At thismoment a series of projections on another of the chains causes initiation of operation of another of the shafts and so on until theshafts I, 2, and 3 of the loom have been operated in proper sequence andto the extent necessary for carrying out the various weaving operations.

These operations occur in the following order: The shaft 2 rotates andthe batten c is raised and actuated (Figs. '7 to 9), to effect the firstselection of the warp threads while the table is swung to elevatedposition so as to cover the knot stitches of the preceding row.

The shaft 2 comes to rest and the shaft 3 rotates, the cam on the lattercausing operation of the mechanism (Fig. 18) controlling the movenut kin the right hand carriage is arrested and the screw it which continuesto turn, slides axially in its bearings, the axial displacement of thescrew causing the right hand clutch h to .be disengaged. The right handpawl h is V V brought'back and the left hand pawl is displaced v 20thereby effecting the engagement of the left hand clutch. The screw hturns in a counter direction and the nut 71. returns to the rightwhereby retracting motion is imparted-to the carriages, the right handcarriage carrying the row of needies an'dpulling the threads woundaround the warp threads to form stitches. The stop 1' then becomesoperative, its right hand end being engaged with the bearing h and itsleft hand end being disposed to stop the nut it in its advance 130 alongthe screw h towards the right. By this stoppage of the nut, the screw his displaced axially in the direction opposite that first mentionedthereby disengaging the clutchh and'locking v the. left hand fork h. bythe right hand pawl h 5.

ceases but it is again set in motion to advance the caniages toward thewarp, exchange the needles I2 to the left hand carriage and pull thethreads and finish the stitches'of the row.

'When the shaft 3 stops and the shaft 2 resumes rotation, the batten isreturned and descends to beat up the weft threads and it is again liftedand=moved laterally for the second selection (Fig. 12). v

The member 20 movesaway from and towards the hooks, thus covering theends of the pile threads (Fig. 31)

The shaft 2 again stops and the shaft 3 resumes operation. The carriagesexchange needles and, in retracting, the stop i moves upwardly,,the pilethreads are stretched at the end of travel of the carriages, therebydisengaging the carriage driving mechanismand arresting the movement ofthe carriages. The tension of the spring 72. may be regulated so as tovary the tension of the loops at the end of travel of the carriage, asdesired.

The. shaft 3- stops and the shaft 2 resumes rotation and the.battenmoves laterally (Fig. 13) 0 for the third selection; Theshaft 2again stops and the shaft 3 resumes rotation and for the third time theneedles pass through the warp threads, and theshaft -3 comes to-rest.

The'shaft 2 resumesrotation, the batten swings and returns to the firstselection (Fig. 11) and at the sametime the hook I and the back comb 6operate for the transformation into Smyrna stitch; the multiple cuttingblades (Figs. 36 and 37) rise and sever the stitched pile threads andthen descend. The shaft .2 stops and the shaft 3 makes its finalrevolution whereby the needles are transferred from the right handcarriage f to the left hand carriage, the left handcarriage being nowadapted to havethe row of used needles therein withdrawn by the needlechanging device.

'At thismomentthe motion of the shaft 3 The shaft 2 again starts andcompletes its cycle which returns it to the position shown in Fig. 2 andthen stops.

At this time the shaft I resumes operation, the batten rises to theposition shown in Figs. 14 and '15; the shuttle race is formed by thearms 11 the shed forming device 8 operates to form the shed, and theshuttle is thrown. The shaft 11 is set in motion (Figs. 14, 15, and 17),the Maltese crosses turn one after the other, swinging the fingers c1downwardly thereby extending the weft as shown in Fig. 16. Thefingersare subsequently restored to normal position and the shed isclosed.

The race forming members d separate, the batten starts to descend but isretained by the toggle links e and e the latter engaging the pin e Atthe moment when the cam on the shaft l engages and operates the roller 6the lever e breaks the toggle joint formed by the links e and e and thebatten falls freely thereby heating the weft. The batten is againraised, the shuttle race is again formed, the shed opens in the oppositedirection, the shuttle is thrown for the second weft which isdistributed and extended by the fingers 01 but in the reverse order bythe disks d The lever 72 acting on the finger 71. of one of the rods 11operates the related dog 72 there by actuating the carriage drivemechanism (Fig. 18), to cause the carriages to be restored to theiroutermost positions.

As soon as the carriages assume their outermost positions, thevertically movablemember m of the needle changing device (Figs. 2, 20,21,

and 38) descends to the level of the left hand Said left hand carriageadvances and the needles Said left hand carriage advances and theneedles therein are inserted in the empty box 4 held clamped against themember m by the clamping jaw m. The needle locking bar 11 is operatedand upon the following retracting movement of the carriage f the row ofneedles is held in the box 4 clamped against the vertically movablemember m by the jaw member in. The jaw member m is then opened and thebox 4 containing the used needles is moved downwardly in the U-shapedmembers n carried by the vertically slidable members 11 At the limit ofthe downward movement of the members n the cams n tilt the angular arms11, outwardly thereby releasing the box 4 and permitting the latter tofall into the arms 0 which latter subsequently swing downwardly anddeposit said box on the lower rack k During the upward movement of theU-shaped members 12 the angular members n carried thereby engage theends of a box containing a fresh supply of needles which has been liftedfrom the upper rack k by the arms 0 into the path of movement of themembers "/z 'and Ti The fresh needle box is moved upwardly against themember m and is clamped thereon by the jaw 112 and during the subsequentadvance of the carriage, the fresh supply of needles is inserted andlocked therein.

- At this moment the vertically movable members m and n are movedupwardly out of the path of the left hand carriage f and the above cycleof operations is automatically repeated, the box 3 70 containing needleswith fresh supplies of pile thread being periodically advanced by thepawls R5 and the box containing used needles deposited on the lowerrack'lc being moved along by the lever k the transfer of boxes from onerack to the other being effected by the vertically movable claw member kAs shown in Figs. and 26, the needle boxes 4 may be formed of a groovedstrip of wood in which is inserted a stamped metal cage l0 having slotsH therein for the reception of the pile thread needles I2.

I claim:

1. In a loom for automatically weaving knot stitch carpets, warpselecting and weft beating means, movable carriages, a row of needlesadapted to pass pile threads through the warp threads, said needlesbeing adapted to be alternately exchanged from one carriage to the otherduring movement of the latter to wind pile threads around the. warpthreads, means for actuating said carriages periodically, shuttle trackforming members movable into position in the warp threads, a weftcontaining shuttle movable on said members, means for moving saidmembers to operative position following the period of actuation of saidcarriages by said actuating means for the transmission of a foundationweft by said shuttle, a needle chang ing device for removing said row ofneedles from one of said carriages and inserting a new row therein, andmeans for actuating said needle changing device during the formation ofthe foundation fabric.

2. A loom as claimed in claim 1, characterized in that said warpselecting and weft beating means includes a vertically movable batten,and releasable means for lifting said batten to normal position, saidreleasable means permitting the free fall of the batten for beating upthe weft threads.

3. A loom as claimed in claim 1 characterized in that said warpselecting and weft beating means includes a vertically movable battenand guides movably receiving said batten, means mounting said guides forlateral oscillating movement and displacement in the direction of theaxis of the batten for producing the selection of the warp threads, andmeans for imparting movement to said guides to oscillate said batten anddisplace the latter axially.

4. A loom as claimed in claim 1 characterized by the provision of meansfor periodically locking the needles in said carriages following theexchange of the needles from one carriage to the other.

5. A loom as claimed in claim 1 characterized by the provision ofpositioning members movable with the carriages and engaging said needlesto maintain the latter in uniformly spaced relation and insuring theexchange of the row of needles from one carriage to the other.

6. A loom as claimed in claim 1 characterized by the provision ofmembers carried by the carriages and coacting with the needles forpositioning the latter, and means yieldably supporting said positioningmembers and adapted upon mutual engagement of the positioning memberscarried by the advancing carriages to permit said positioning members tobe displaced.

7. A loom as claimed in claim 1 characterized by the provision ofmembers carried by the carriages and coacting with the needles forpositioning the latter, means yieldably supporting said positioningmembers and adapted upon mutual engagement of the positioning memberscarried by the advancing carriages to permit said positioning members tobe displaced, and' releasable means to lock the positioning members indisplaced positions.

8. A loom as claimed in claim 1 characterized by the provision of meansfor extending the weft thread laid by the shuttle.

9. A loom as claimed in claim 1 characterized by the provision of meansfor extending the weft thread laid by the shuttle, the last mentionedmeans including fingers pivotally mounted on the shuttle track formingmembers, and means for periodically actuating said fingers.

10. A loom as claimed in claim 1 characterized by the provision ofreleasable means for locking the row of needles in each carriage, saidneedle changing device including auxiliary gripping means adapted toengage the needles presented thereto during operation of the changingdevice to lock the needles in position in the latter during changing.

11. A loom as claimed in claim 1 characterized in that said needlechanging device includes a two-part element movable into the path of theadjacent carriage, and means for moving one of said parts into positionto em brace said needles and effect removal thereof during thesubsequent retraction of the carriage.

12. A loom as claimed in claim 1 characterized in that said needlechanging device includes a two-part element movable into the path of theadjacent carriage, and means for moving one of said parts into positionto embrace said needles and effect removal thereof during the subsequentretraction of the carriage, and a needle locking member carried by thechanging device for locking the needles in position therein.

13. A loom as claimed in claim 1 characterized by the provision of apositioning member carried by the changing device and coacting with theneedles in one of the carriages during the changing operation.

14. A loom as claimed in claim 1 characterized by the provision of racksfor supporting bars containing used and unused needles, said needlechanging device being provided with a needle bar adapted to receive usedneedles from the adjacent carriage during the changing operation, armsarranged to receive the needle bar from the changing device and adaptedto deposit said bar on the. rack for used needle bars, and means forpicking an unused bar of needles from the rack and positioning said barin the path of the changing device to be engaged by the latter.

JULES MON'IER.

